The Weekly Watch

The Politics of Diet and Health

You are what you eat, digest, and absorb. Our bodies are an ecosystem...a condominium of critters on our skin and through our digestive tracts. We are like a doughnut covered with little denizens. What we eat determines what critters live within us. This is one of the reasons our health outcomes are so bad. We've been told to eat the wrong things. We grow those foods in the wrong way. Big ag, the medical industry and big Pharma all profit off our ill health. However, you can change that by improving your diet, modifying when you eat, and perhaps adding vitamin and mineral supplements. People are using diet to cure Type 2 diabetes, heart issues, and various inflammation diseases from arthritis to crones. You can use diet to radically reduce your likelihood of cancer, heart attacks, Alzheimer's, and strokes.

better food pyramid.png

I want to start this discussion of health by saying I'm not a physician. I'm a soil scientist. That may be why this concept of the gut biome makes such good sense to me because the soil ecosystem has a similar effect on the health of plants. Your brain is controlled by your gut...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Resc3sAq8B0 (41 min)
My diet journey began a couple of years ago with OPOL's essay where I learned about fasting and a low-carb or "keto" diet. Now 70 pounds lighter and feeling better than I have for years, I've learned more about the benefits of this eating regime. Sadly the medical community is slow to change and make new recommendations despite overwhelming evidence. For the most part the healthy grain myth is still promoted.

When medical scientists propagate a false hypothesis, two things happen, and both of them are bad. First, the wrong idea causes direct harm to those who adopt practices based on that incorrect hypothesis. Second, the wrong idea suppresses any attempts to discover the correct hypothesis. Such suppression occurs as a result of (enforced) scientific consensus.

Anyone who dares to question the false but agreed-upon hypothesis is labeled a “hypothesis skeptic” or “hypothesis denier.” Very soon, that individual finds herself a scientific pariah, shunned and publicly humiliated by her colleagues, no longer able to secure research funding. In this way skeptics are conveniently and very effectively removed from the scientific mainstream. This technique is now recognized as academic mobbing (2) and ritual degradation. The consequences for the victim of academic mobbing and ritual degradation are usually calamitous.

https://www.crossfit.com/essentials/its-the-insulin-resistance-stupid-pa...

Want to hear a story about how dietary scientists can be attacked? Tim Noakes' experience is quite a tale, and speaks loudly about how science operates in today's culture (and perhaps through time). He tells how he evolved and how the system fought his revelations.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgFgmqH7QAc (37 min)

From the blurb under the video:

An impressive body of scientific evidence over the last 15 years documents long term benefits of carbohydrate-restricted, especially ketogenic, diets. We now understand molecular mechanisms and why they work. Popular books and articles now challenge the advice ‘carbohydrates are good and fats are bad.’ Circa mid-19th century urinary ketones were identified in diabetics sealing their toxic label for the next 150 years. Despite work four decades ago showing ketones were highly functional metabolites, they are still misidentified as toxic byproducts of fat metabolism. The vilification of fat by regulatory and popular dogma perpetuates this myth. But the nutrition-metabolic landscape is improving dramatically.

A growing number of researchers have contributed to what is now a critical mass of science that provides compelling clinical evidence that ketogenic diets uniquely benefit weight loss, pre-diabetes, and type-2 diabetes. In the last five years, basic scientists have discovered that b-hydroxybutyrate (BHB), the primary circulating ketone, is a potent signaling molecule that decreases inflammation and oxidative stress. BHB has been suggested to be a longevity metabolite, with strong support from recently published mouse studies showing decreased midlife mortality and extended longevity and healthspan. Although type-2 diabetes is often described as a chronic progressive disease, emerging evidence indicates that sustained nutritional ketosis can reverses the disease. There is growing interest in studying potential therapeutic effects of ketosis on cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. There are even reasons certain athletes may benefit from nutritional ketosis and ketone supplements ─ debunking the long-standing dogma that high carbohydrate intake is required to perform optimally.

More from this excellent article which is worth a full read...

The ultimate tragedy is that the one theory that destroyed global health best explains why the adoption of the LFHC (low fat high carb) diet has has been ignored. It is not taught in even a minority of medical schools around the world. This theory holds that a single biological state, insulin resistance syndrome (IRS), is the key driver of most of the chronic medical conditions to which modern humans fall prey. This theory is the work of a single researcher, Dr. Gerald Reaven, recently deceased, and his small team of researchers at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California.

insulin.png

It really is all about insulin. Dr. Jason Fung suggest using different terminology rather than Insulin Resistance...

So, if you say, I have insulin resistance, people will say what caused it, and then there’s all this debate, oh maybe it’s a high fat cause in insulin resistance, I don’t think so, but if you say now, that the problem is hyperinsulinemia, then you say okay well I have too much insulin, bring it down. It’s like well it seems pretty obvious how you can bring it down. Cut the carbs and don’t eat, so it’s much more powerful.

Jason's two compartment explanation of insulin and the role it plays in fat deposition and fat burning. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIuj-oMN-Fk (36 min)

I featured his presentation to other doctors on the cause of the Obesity Epidemic a few weeks ago. He traces the history of the research and the development of various food products like Crisco (crystallized cotton seed oil)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8BGYhreaco (53 min)

Another great interview with Jason by Dr. Mercola (1 hour)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXivdDORKRQ

This is an excellent 1 hour interview with Jason looking at how diet effects heart health, cancer, and longevity

Transcript here https://www.dietdoctor.com/diet-doctor-podcast-23-dr-jason-fung

But you know the question is who’s looking at it, like these low carbohydrate diets haven’t been used for a long time because we worry about the dietary fats. And intermittent fasting hasn’t been used. When I started talking about it like six years ago, like I was really just a lonely voice in the wilderness. Nobody, but nobody was studying this. So, are the studies going to come? I hope so. I don’t know that there’s a lot of people interested in it, but here’s the thing and this is sort of the art of medicine as opposed to the science of medicine. Everything in medicine comes down to risk versus reward, so if you give a drug like a beta block or you do a stent or something, what’s the risk of doing a stent? Because there’s risk, because everything has risk, and what’s the reward?

If the risk is more than the reward, then you don’t do it. If the reward is more than the risk, you go ahead and plop in a stent, or you give aspirin or you give beta blockers or whatever it is. So, what’s the risk if you don’t eat, you know for 16 hours of the day. What’s the cost like… zero? What’s the risk? If you are overweight, there’s practically no risk, so then you say well okay there’s no risk so any reward you can get is a plus and here’s the thing, you don’t have to prove it if it works for you.

Confused about cholesterol and heart condition? It is almost unimportant compared to hyperinsulinema. Take a look at the root causes of heart disease (34 min)

So in the 1990's a simple scan was developed to look at how badly your heart is clogged. Here again there was resistance to change and accepting the new technology. Great profits were/are being accumulated using stints and prescribing statins, and about 4 million folks died before the heart association gave it's seal of approval to the relatively inexpensive CAC scan. Here's the story...

Note that the best fixes for cardiovascular disease primarily involve lowering hyperinsulinemia (mainly via a well-formulated LCHF diet), adequate Magnesium, optimum Omega3:Omega6 ratio, adequate sun exposure/vitamin D and many others. The movie here mainly mentioned meds, a very small part of the risk-reversal story...

Patrick Theut's heart was one third clogged. He cured himself with diet. You can reverse heart disease with intermittent fasting, a low carb healthy fat (LCHF) diet, and various suppliments
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4RipKub_Y8 (1.2 hours)
transcript https://thefatemperor.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Want-to-Reverse-You...
The importance of Vitamin K complex https://www.k-vitamins.com/

Research suggests that vitamin K deficiency is associated with osteoporosis, heart disease, and cancer (see the published research pages). Research also indicates that the need for vitamin K increases with age and that older individuals require higher amounts of vitamin K to keep adequate levels of carboxylated vitamin K available in their bodies (Tsugawa, et al. 2006). This appears to coincide with the increasing need for Vitamin D as we age, as one also loses the ability to produce vitamin K as they advance in age. For example, a 70 year old only produces 10% of the vitamin D that a 21 year old produces.

Vitamin K also may be a stronger antioxidant than vitamin E and may be key to anti-aging (Gheduzzi, et al., 2007).

Sufficient quantities of Vitamin K in the body are necessary for the activation of these proteins in the body to take place, which then allows the proteins to bind calcium, and to move it around, and to function as an essential regulator of calcium and magnesium metabolism within the body, and specifically in bones, the heart, the arteries, the kidneys, teeth, etc. Vitamin K helps ensure that calcium is bound to the surface of bones, that calcium is inhibited from depositing in the arteries, that kidney stones do not form, and that blood coagulates, among other things (Shearer, 1997; Booth, 1997; Suttie, 2006; DiNicolantonio et al, 2015). The vitamin K family appears to be really "busy".

Without Vitamin K, the proteins are unable to move the calcium around appropriately, and carboxylation of these proteins is incomplete. The results may be what is known as the “calcium paradox” whereby too little calcium results in weak bones and teeth, while excess calcium accumulates in the arteries making them stiff and inelastic. This is not good!

Patrick Theut's supplement regime would be too overwhelming for me, but you have to admire this biochemical engineers research and self-diagnosis. (1st 5 min of a 27 min clip)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2KbWgd_6y4

Theut illustrates the primary factors in heart disease other than (or related to) insulin. He suggests the items in yellow are the most important to test and adjust with suppliments

Patrick-Root-Cause-1.jpg

You can resolve the progressive disease of atherosclerosis by focusing on key vectors.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8Xd9e4B3e8 (42 min)

Dr. Aseem Malhotra is a cardiologist who has treated or performed surgery on well over 10,000 patients in his career to date. In this episode Aseem discusses insights into Coronary Calcification, and we also discuss the potential to reverse heart disease and even the Coronary CAC score (with the right interventions of course). Our feeling is that actual reversal of coronary disease may be the next big thing!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-blm_AiAL0 (19 min)
Transcript here: https://thefatemperor.com/ep31-dr-aseem-malhotra-on-calcification-and-he...

healthy greens.jpg

Another benefit of intermittent fasting and a low carb / keto diet is cleaning your brain's plaque deposits (much like cleaning the plaque in your circulatory system). Amy Berger, the author of the Alzheimer’s Antidote, is passionate about the link between diet and brain health. Her research focuses on how a low-carb, high-fat diet can improve neurological brain conditions like Alzheimer’s, and why the wrong diet can worsen and even cause it. There’s a reason it is increasingly being called “Type 3 Diabetes”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMkzgkThSl8 (1.1 hour)
Transcript here - https://hvmn.com/podcast/alzheimers-antidote-ft-amy-berger-episode-98

Like you said, they regularly refer to Alzheimer's disease as type 3 diabetes. They also call it brain insulin resistance. You'll see all these things in the medical journals. Where that comes from is the primary problem in the brain of somebody with Alzheimer's is that the brain has lost the ability to effectively metabolize glucose, so I say that this is a metabolic problem, metabolic meaning energy. It has to do with the way the brain gets energy. This is a fuel shortage in the brain and because of this fuel shortage, the neurons basically starve and they atrophy. They wither. They shrivel up. You can even see this on MRIs. They can see the physical matter of the brain shrinking.

Why would be having this exploding epidemic now all of a sudden in human history versus a hundred years ago, 300 years ago? This is a new disease, right, or not brand new, but it's exploding in incidence in the same way type 2 diabetes is and cardiovascular disease and PCOS and hypertension, all of this other stuff that we know is driven primarily by high insulin.

fats.jpg

If indeed we should alter our diets to minimize carbs and maximize healthy fats, what are the high fat foods you should eat?
good vs bad fats (1 hour)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drLqY11thFo
...and another hour with Dr. Mercola and DiNicolantonio on fats and more
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhDVe8lKOyw

Mercola and Dr Aseem Malhotra take on many myths about fats
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7q8AroJ2SgI (52 min)
https://doctoraseem.com/

greens.jpg

As if cutting carbs isn't enough, there's another potential issue. Gluten is only one of many lectins. Plants make these compounds to discourage animals from eating them.
Dr Gundry was trained as an evolutionary scientist prior to becoming a renown heart surgeon. He suggests the dangerous nature of lectins and how they relate to autoimmune disease. Most importantly, he shares his vast experience and research on why lectins are so harmful to the body, and how to reverse the damages they cause.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luna9RQsL1E (1.2 hours)
After hearing Gundry's lectin hypothesis I am using my pressure cooker more often especially on new world foods to cook out the lectins. First nations peoples were wise. They soaked corn in lye, charred skins and removed seeds from peppers, peeled and deseeded tomatoes and thereby reduced the lectins they contained.

DiNicolantonio is best known for his book "The Salt Fix" which dispelled the myth we should eat a low salt diet. Salt is important for many reasons. Dr Mercola and he focus on the need for salt.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoeAJq0Qv1Y (47 min)

This study, done on 147 people with normal weight and blood pressure found that “ With
dietary salt restriction, serum total, LDL-cholesterol, as well as serum insulin and uric
acid concentrations increased significantly . ”The effect on insulin seems to be so
significant that , a study published in the Metabolism Journal , found that just one week on a low sodium diet caused onset of insulin resistance in a group of healthy volunteers. In fact, doctors have known that diuretics, which deplete salt, can also promote insulin resistance and diabetes. As the study says: “ Low-salt (LS) diet activates the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone and sympathetic nervous systems, both of which can increase insulin resistance (IR).”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ygExIZm7Wo (15 min)
PDF transcript here - https://www.patreon.com/posts/14931861

Dr. Berg talks about the importance of sodium. Sodium is an essential mineral and without it, we get hyponatremia (a condition of low sodium in the blood). If you're drinking too much water and have too low salt intake, it can be dangerous to your heart. Sodium is needed to control fluid volume and even pressure and if the balance is not correct with potassium, you can either become too hydrated or dehydrated. And your adrenals control sodium through the hormones (mineralocordicoids).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plEulSI2RsY (6 min)

I never did suffer a "keto flu", however about 3 or 4 months in ketosis, I started getting leg and foot cramps during the night. I added more salt and the problem was solved. Just like the healthy grains myth, a low salt recommendation maybe misleading as well. I've been using Himalaya Salt, but have now moved to Redmond Salt from an ancient seabed in Utah. Sea salt today contains microplastics.

So here's Dr. Gundry and his recommended food pyramid as a nice 4 min summary...

Here's Gundry again on the myths most nutritionists tell you
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRa-ba5USwY (6 min)

So I put this piece together as a reference for various health issues...obesity, coronary conditions, diabetes, cancer, strokes and Alzheimer's. Ironically they are all related to insulin... hyperinsulinemia. Many scientists estimate 70% of Americans suffer from this condition, most without knowing about it (watch the widowmaker above to see several examples). We can alter our health with diet. However in a for-profit health system, simple, effective (and mainly free) solutions are rarely recommended or even taught in Med School. If you have diabetes and your doctor recommends a grain based diet and insulin, find a new doctor. If you have risks of heart disease demand a non-invasive CAC (Calcium scan) so you can "see" the condition of your heart. The politics of diet are driven by profit and following the money leads you to big Ag, big pharma, and the medical industry.

However you have the power to control these factors yourself. Take control of your health and lead a happy and vibrant life. My personal lifestyle involves eating one or two healthy keto meals a day...mainly vegetables with olive, avocado, and coconut oils. We enjoy our pastured eggs. We also eat fish (wild caught salmon, sardines, and anchovies) as well as a little bit of pastured grass fed beef and pork from a local farm. Initially I used multiple day water fasts to break my hyperinsulinemia. Once my body learned to burn fats (which is the state of ketosis), I am able to cycle in and out of carbohydrate and fat metabolism. I sometimes break out of keto eating other things on holiday or dinner at friend's and so on. I can always fast a day or two and be right back into ketosis again. You can tell you're in ketosis when you are not hungry...insulin drives hunger. The low carb high fat (LCHF) diet combined with fasting will improve your health. It does take some adjustment, but I feel I eat much better now than before. Previously we ate lots of bread, rice, and pasta as the base of our diet, and yes initially it was difficult to alter. We weened ourselves off bread by making almond flour biscuits and coconut bread. There's cauliflower crust pizza and miracle noodle and rice too. After two years on the diet, I feel so much better that I'm writing about this so you might consider it. Wishing you all good health and happy lives....

PS
I went to Trade Day yesterday morning and one of the traders who had already lost a foot to diabetes was in a wheelchair with the other foot removed. He was eating a ham biscuit. I couldn't help but feel like he is a victim of this dietary myth. I thought of my old friend who ran our local hardware. In his 70's they started whittling on him, eventually taking off both legs. It was a miserable slow death. There is no need for this. Fung claims he has never seen a case of type 2 diabetes he can't cure (not control but cure) with a LCHF diet coupled with fasting. Check out his program at https://idmprogram.com/

Share
up
0 users have voted.

Comments

Lookout's picture

Off to rehearse with the old band for a rare gig today. So I hope you'll feel free to comment and/or ask questions and share your diet stories.

I find the myth of diet which has been perpetrated and the ill effects which resulted are a major scam. However this is one we can control...as opposed to politics or climate collapse.

Be well!

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Great stuff Lookout. Thanks! Opol also inspired me to do the fasting thing. Just came off a 5 day ginger and honey fast while offshore. The crew ate like starving beasts. Maybe because of the long-fast crossing the Atlantic, short fasts now come to the point 'faster'.

Reinforces in my mind the well-worn nutrition propaganda we are exposed to: grains good, salt bad and other such nonsense, requires listening to your appetite and self education. The doc's don't push that agenda so much as pharmaceutical cures. It's what they've been taught. Be your own doctor.

A poem, totally off topic...

St. Theresa of Calcutta.jpg

up
0 users have voted.
Lookout's picture

@QMS

Be your own doctor.

...and heal thyself.

Have a good one!

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Raggedy Ann's picture

OPOL's essay changed my life. My son calls it intermittent eating, lol, but after nine months, I've never felt healthier. While in Mexico, I knew I'd be off program some, but dud a 24 hour fast on my return and got myself back on track. Going to Boston next week and not worried about it. I get back on track, easily.

I'll be sharing this essay with those that ask me what I've done. Thanks for the comprehensive information. Makes it easy for those interested in taking these steps to get a better quality of life.

Have a terrific Sunday, folks! Pleasantry

up
0 users have voted.

"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

Lookout's picture

@Raggedy Ann

Once you break your hyperinsulinemia and train your body to run on fats you can easily switch back and forth as you suggest. What I found amazing is it is so much more than weight...heart, brain, gut, ...health. All the major killers are associated with high insulin. The other new bit of info is the CAC test. The Widowmaker is a pretty interesting story and the CAC provides an easy way to check your heart health. Should be routine.

All the best. Have a great time in Boston! I once spent 4 weeks there (well cambridge at the Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)at a workshop and enjoyed the area.

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Raggedy Ann's picture

@Lookout
I have found my body bounces back easily!

Take care!

up
0 users have voted.

"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

It is always good to be reminded of “you are what you eat” and what more and more evidence is pointing out about things that were always the correct way to eat. Will do more research on fasting because think this could help with some of my issues and my health.

This essay was also sad because both D.O. And I had the CAC scan. They found some plaque in his and the doctor placed him on a statin and after watching the “Widowmaker” feel that something similar to what they showed happened to him. The autopsy showed he had a blood clot to his right artery and I must have gotten to him to late to administer CPR. The best I can do now is continue with following healthy eating and lifestyle habits.

up
0 users have voted.

Life is what you make it, so make it something worthwhile.

This ain't no dress rehearsal!

@jakkalbessie
Doesn't it matter where your family came from? My father, "pure" Southern Italian/Sicilian had lactose intolerance. My wife and all her family, that we have traced to (only) Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Northern Germany, has absolutely no problem digesting cow's milk and ice cream. She just shudders at goat's milk (which I enjoy).
No tomatoes, squash, melon, peppers? Those are the foods that i eat to feel better when I'm sick. Just because I didn't come from Central America doesn't mean my body can't use these high-potassium high Vitamin A foods.

EDIT: Misplaced. This was supposed to be in reply to Lookout's essay.

up
0 users have voted.

I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

Lookout's picture

@The Voice In the Wilderness

But as Fung points out take a Japanese woman in Japan, her chance of getting breast cancer is minimal. Take her to Hawaii and her chances are many times more. In California her chances are double what they would be in Hawaii. Same story with the Inuits. So environment (and diet) are important.

Gundry seems a bit of a snake oil salesman, but I had never heard of lectins and I found his take interesting. He works with folks that have leaky guts. We grow mainly new world crops as you know. We eat lots of tomatoes, peppers, and so on. I buy into his leafy greens and healthy oils as the base of our diet...collards cooked in lard kept many a southerner alive. But I am pressure cooking the tomato sauce we make this year cause we use a fair amount of it all year in case lectins are an issue.

I love fruit, but I'm limiting my consumption. I've eaten plenty of blueberries, but laying off melons for the most part. But today they had a nice homegrown one at practice

Reminds me of this one...
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgRvbOZd-hk]

Hope your feeling healthy and happy. If you are, chances are you're eating well. The essay was merely food for thought...

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

@Lookout
I've been watching PBS' "New Scandinavian Cooking" series. They have lamb and such in Sweden but Norway seems to live on cod. I think it was the second show where they showed enormous drying racks in Northern Norway. (The smell must be indescribable!). I knew about baccala (sp?), but assumed that the fish was caught in Italian waters. Nope! A full third of the Norwegian cod is exported with 90% going as dried cod (baccala) to Italy! So I thought, "Duh! Cod wars between The UK and Norway, not Italy. Cod probably won't live in the Med. Too hot! (and what will global warming do to the cod catch?)". Plenty of Omega-3 in Norwegian diets!

By this guy's theory cod should be bad for Italians. They should eat more cured pork! Because despite claims of "Mediterranean diet", every Italian family I know eats plenty of sausage, meatballs, and lasagna with ground meat. The latter is usually beef in the USA but there are few cows in Southern Italy, Pork, lamb and goat are the staples, along with Sheep and Goat cheese (your "Southern milk"). Mozzarella, BTW, is made from Water Buffalo milk. In Italy, that is, that's why if you look at the packages in the store, they say "imitation mozzarella". In the USA, cow's milk is used. There is a bovine disease in Central Italy. Marco Polo brought back water buffaloes from China as a curiosity and Lo and Behold! They are immune to the bovine disease. Read that a long time ago in Smithsonian Magazine.

Water Buffaloes are peaceful creatures. An Indian co-worker told me that at home, they are stabled next to the house so that they can stick their heads in because they are family pets like dogs here. Five year olds ride them around. His father had a typical Indian farm, about three acres, which interestingly is about the size of medieval European farms. It's probably the limit of what a single family can handle without machinery.
My friend sent an IH lawn tractor to his father (we worked at IH and had an employee discount). It wasn't very useful. His father couldn't afford to buy gasoline, but "Look everyone, my son, the engineer, sent me a tractor from America!". Sam (really Subramanyan) was a Mechanical Engineer. I was an Electrical Engineer (by courtesy, really a Physicist) and we worked together on many projects before financial engineers cratered the 150 year old IH.

Addendum: just had to add that as a Hindu, Sam never ate beef until he was over 21 and living in the USA. He didn't care for it. But, "My wife and I like McDonald's because the burgers don't taste like beef!" Just had to add that!

up
0 users have voted.

I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

Lookout's picture

@The Voice In the Wilderness

...and we're lucky to have local pork producers raising pigs in the woods and on pasture.

Saw a wonderful documentary about water buffalo in SE Asia once... they were part of the family...a valuable member. Oxen were once common beast of burden here. Worked horses a little, but never oxen.

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

@Lookout
Looking forward to it. Just three of us from the two nuclear families here. Planning on moving in the next three years to join the younger generation in Calhoun County. Stuff like that abortion bill give me real cause to doubt (what kind of people will I be living with?). My daughter's friend Crissy and your essays give me belief that good people live everywhere. I remember Muslims that I worked with from Iran, Turkey, Pakistan, and France! and realize that good people live everywhere and even most religious people are okay, just not fanatics (like my right wing relatives). My brother-in-law Bob is conservative (ex-Army lifer) but not a fanatic. I'm hoping he will make new friends at the VFW in Alabama. After all, he must have worked with lots of Southerners in the Army.
These guys all have a bond. I remember two of his friends that showed up at the hospital to see him. One, a Gulf war vet and a younger guy that's an Iraq war vet. There used to be friction between the WWII vets and the Vietnam vets. (Why didn't you guys win? We beat Hitler!), but the Middle East vets have sadly learned what the Vietnam vets learned, "put not your faith in Princes". Ryan, the young Iraq War vet told me he has PTSD. I'm sorry for him. The pols threw his life away for what? At least my uncles stopped genocide.

up
0 users have voted.

I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

Lookout's picture

@The Voice In the Wilderness

PM me and come see us if you would like and if have time when you're down this way.

One reason I like Tulsi is her ability as a Major to reach across the aisle. Lots of folks voted T-rump because he said he would stop the wars. He lied. Those folks who are aware of the scam seem attracted to Tulsi.

BBQ - from the barb of the tooth to the Q of the tail...or so I've heard is the origin of the term. There's lot of excellent BBQ in Alabama. Sadly so many of the old meat and 3 (veggies) cafes have been killed by the fast food joints.

Have you read any Rick Bragg books? He grew up near Jacksonville (where I finished my teaching career) and exudes the region with his words. His most recent book - Best Cook in the World - is a definite trip into southern cooking. "All over but the Shouting" is another good one.

As you have found, there's good and bad everywhere. You won't find many that agree with your politics, but if you have a flat tire, they will stop and help you. As I'm sure you know Anniston is where they burnt the bus which carried the freedom riders.

Take care and be well!

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Unabashed Liberal's picture

@Lookout

he said,

As you have found, there's good and bad everywhere. You won't find many that agree with your politics, but if you have a flat tire, they will stop and help you.

Politically, I've often felt like 'we're from another planet,' when we're down there. Phew!

Seriously, most of my life I've lived far north in Interior Alaska; lived three times outside of CONUS; and, we've lived in each of the four quadrants of the US, at one time or the other.

But, we've also lived in several Southern states--off-and-on, over the years. And, I can honestly say that the 'friendliest' people that I've interacted with [in the South] are Alabamians.

My advice - talk about the weather, pets, gardening, "Alabama Football," whatever--just stay away from politics or religion, and you'll probably think that most of them are pretty agreeable and pleasant folk.

For example, lawn maintenance folks volunteered to continue mowing a residential lawn--for free. An acre. Indefinitely. Ironically, the owner cited biblical scriptures (and, affection for the deceased) for wanting to do so. What can I say? What an incredibly 'generous' gesture. Smile

Anyhoo, good luck to you and your extended Family in Calhoun County. Don't know that area (North Alabama) very well, at all. However, in my opinion, either the Greater Huntsville area, or the Gulf Coast area of Mobile Bay--particularly, one of the satellite communities along the Eastern Shore--are probably the best places to call home.

(Basing the opinion about Huntsville on opinions of family members who lived there, albeit, several decades ago.)

At any rate, there might be a little less 'culture shock' in these locales.

Biggrin

Mollie

“Dogs have given us their absolute all. We are the center of their universe. We are the focus of their love and faith and trust. They serve us in return for scraps. It is without a doubt the best deal man has ever made.
~~Roger Caras

up
0 users have voted.

Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.

@Unabashed Liberal

But can't stop talking Dem politics. My daughter, actually more Left that both of us combined, talks politics only to people she knows very well. She sees people scowling when my sister talks, but they are too polite to upbraid an old lady with a walker, even an obvious Yankee. I suspect they think "crazy old Yankee lady". Or their Mommas taught them to be polite to crazy old ladies.

up
0 users have voted.

I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

@Lookout

PM me and come see us if you would like and if have time when you're down this way.
up
0 users have voted.

I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

@Lookout
Apparently that actually was "outside agitators", namely the Klan. I'm sure there are Klansmen in Anniston. Hell, I know Klan sympathizers in the Chicago Suburbs! However, it seems that the younger generation is ashamed of that incident.

My daughter lives in walking distance from where it happened. There's a museum there now.

Might as well judge Chicago for the Haymarket riot.

up
0 users have voted.

I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

Lookout's picture

@jakkalbessie

and wondered if a CAC might have helped. Evidently not.

I wanted to share this because I feel so much better and hoped it might help others. I love SoE's comment below...Good advice there.

You sound like your doing well and I hope you're feeling healthy too!

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Unabashed Liberal's picture

@Lookout @jakkalbessie

topics of Medicare, MA, UMFA, Part D., etc., don't come up, that I don't think of, and miss, DO.

I am glad to hear that you're keeping busy, and thriving, too. The adjustments have had to be tremendous and daunting, but, you certainly appear to be meeting all the challenges before you, with your usual grace. Pleasantry

As always, good to see you.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Lookout,

You outdid yourself with your excellent writing. Clapping

Your choice of topics, especially, lately, couldn't be more apt, considering that they're more than a few 'seniors' populating this blogging Community. Smile

Thank you.

Mollie

“Dogs have given us their absolute all. We are the center of their universe. We are the focus of their love and faith and trust. They serve us in return for scraps. It is without a doubt the best deal man has ever made.
~~Roger Caras

up
0 users have voted.

Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.

Lookout's picture

@Unabashed Liberal

Thanks for the kind comment. I feel like this information is not well known. What a nightmare our health care system is. As a teacher I never liked the way we operated schools, but our health systems makes the education system look like a fine oiled machine. You must be in charge of your own health. Knowing healthy options is a way to design your own health regime.

All the best. Keep us posted on your S.A. research.

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Unabashed Liberal's picture

@Lookout

a lot of the info you're posting isn't well-known, which is one reason it's so helpful/useful.

You can be sure, as I learn more about various SA countries, I'll post at OT's about what I'm learning. I've decided to delay by a couple weeks, adding several SA countries to my phone plan, only because while I'm helping Mr M, I don't have sufficient time to research the stuff I should, before I call Embassies to see what info they're willing, and able to furnish us.

One question - Do you consider 'The Weekly Watch' to be OT-like?

IOW, if/when I find out more about Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, and Ecuador--would it be okay (on Sundays) to post a blurb in a comment about what I learn? Or, would you prefer that commenters stick to the topic of the day. Hey, that would be cool, and I'd totally understand. Needless to say, most essays work under those rules.

Just so you know, recently, I decided to swear off healthcare on weekends. So, if I go OT in a thread where it's permitted, it'll be to talk about dogs, birds, animals, pets, or expatriating to LA! Smile

Have a nice rest-of-your-weekend!

Pleasantry

Mollie

up
0 users have voted.

Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.

Lookout's picture

@Unabashed Liberal

Of course! Please add any topic you would like to the table.

Mi casa es su casa.

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Unabashed Liberal's picture

@Lookout

Mollie

up
0 users have voted.

Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.

@Lookout Did enjoy what SoE did have to say. There is so much information that can help us continue to eat and be healthy.

Trying to get plenty of exercise and eat healthy because it is all the decisions to make that seems to cause the imbalance in my life. People tell me don’t rush things but sometimes let the overwhelm get to me. Will keep moving on.

up
0 users have voted.

Life is what you make it, so make it something worthwhile.

This ain't no dress rehearsal!

Lookout's picture

@jakkalbessie

Do what feels right for you. We have a friend that lost her husband to a brain tumor several years ago. You seem to be adapting better than she has been able. As you know, we simply must take control of our life...and walk the path to our personal destination. All the best on your journey!

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Azazello's picture

These may be off-topic but here are a couple of vids I flagged during the week.
First we have Max Blumenthal and Ben Norton talking with a member of the Honduran opposition about the history of US involvement in that country.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQlkVkMjcTI width:500 height:300]
This next one is "English Shaun" talking about the drug trade. Shaun Attwood is an interesting character. He moved to Phoenix from England in the 90s to work in finance as a salesman, cold-calling investors. He got good at that and made some money, then he discovered Ecstasy. He started going to raves and buying X for his friends which eventually led to large-scale smuggling and dealing. He got busted in Phoenix and did time in Sheriff Joe's Maricopa County jail and then the Arizona State prison system. He was deported back to England where he wrote three books about his experiences in the US. He now does prison talks and videos, of which this is one. It has some good insights.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NVMj1IP72I width:500 height:300]

up
0 users have voted.

We wanted decent healthcare, a living wage and free college.
The Democrats gave us Biden and war instead.

Lookout's picture

@Azazello

...is doing some of the best reporting around. I think Aaron Mate works with them too... may be freelance.

I look forward to learning about English Shaun...sound interesting.

Thanks for the clips as always!

I've been getting a kick out of Jonathon Pie (2 min)
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6Rho9tvpNM]

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

studentofearth's picture

injuries, infections, toxin and chronic illnesses.

I practiced pharmacy behind a counter in my 20s and 30's in small and large towns, which evolved into consulting on safe med use before leaving active practice. The primary lessons I learned were:

1) Be responsible for maintaining and improving your own health or listen to the designated person in your family (often wife or mother). Which includes finding a new health practitioner occasionally. Respect and trust between you and the one providing healthcare treatment can be as important as the treatment.

2) Learn to listen to your body and learn to see the small changes and physical clues in others and yourself. It is easier to do a minor course adjustment before there is a major problem. Insulin resistance discussed in this diary is a good example. This link for some additional signs of insulin resistance.

3) Everyone is a unique individual and there is not one answer or one problem universal to us all. I think in addition to profit our bouncing from one extreme medical idea for another is not believing there can be more than one truth at the same time. A person can be made sick with a high carb diet and a low carb diet - it depends on the person, their time of life and other environmental factors.

4) It is an important to know when to reduce or stop treatment as it is to start. Over treatment is a significant risks to health, including medications and exercise.
Sport medicine is a profitable business segment.

5) I consider the foundations to effect health are food, physical activity, mental activity and air.

6) The physical body will die after it is born and does not always function perfectly. It is what we do within the beginning and end that is important. Working with people who knew they were dying and still enjoying life brought a level of peace and acceptance to mine I can't explain easily.

7) Most people will ignore advice if it requires them to make personal lifestyle changes, environmental changes or learn and apply a new skill. It is easier to pop a pill, inhale a substance, have a surgery, or live with degrading health. (Inhale a substance - I was thinking of asthma inhalers)

8) Modern medicine theories for treatment and health are based on our understanding chemistry and biology. We have barely began to apply any understanding of physics, mostly within the scope of how it effects chemistry and biology. Yet most of us instinctively know a good joke or music makes us feel better.

up
0 users have voted.

Still yourself, deep water can absorb many disturbances with minimal reaction.
--When the opening appears release yourself.

Lookout's picture

@studentofearth

I feel like it ought to be a stand alone essay. Every point is so on target. I would add "being in nature" as one of your foundations of health. Somehow being in the forest seems to help me be healthful. Music can also be a meditative activity.

So, breaking out of hyperinsulinemia has finally allowed me to..

Learn to listen to your body and learn to see the small changes and physical clues in (others and) yourself.

especially my gut.

Thanks again for your thoughtful comment. I hope all is well on the farm.

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Lookout's picture

@studentofearth

They don't mention LPIR test...which I think is a lipoprotein insulin ratio.

It seems reliable...
fx1_lrg.jpg

Conclusion

In middle-aged or older healthy women followed prospectively for over 20 years, LPIR was robustly associated with incident T2D, including among those with an optimal clinical metabolic profile. LPIR improved T2D risk classification and may guide early and targeted prevention strategies.

https://www.lipidjournal.com/article/S1933-2874(17)30352-5/fulltext

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

studentofearth's picture

@Lookout The ease obtaining it will depend on insurance company's willingness to pay and a healthcare practitioners training on which lab test to use for screening and monitoring.

There are a number methods to monitor insulin resistance and since there is a growing awareness of the problem more will be promoted and developed. Will take your idea of a stand alone article and flush it out a little.

up
0 users have voted.

Still yourself, deep water can absorb many disturbances with minimal reaction.
--When the opening appears release yourself.

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

So much in your essay it'll take me some time to process it, but I wanted to say thank you for bringing this up.

Currently I'm in the process of lowering my carbs--have already eliminated (or radically reduced) wheat, corn, dairy products, high-fructose corn syrup and potatoes. Don't eat many legumes, though I refuse to think beans are the devil. I'm just experimenting here, but have some interesting results so far.

The hope is that if I change my diet radically enough it will help me with depression and I'll be able to reduce the amount of medication I take.

Exercise is, of course, also key to all this.

Looking forward to reading the rest of your essay.

up
0 users have voted.

"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

Purportedly invented by the CIA. Here it is applied to science:

Anyone who dares to question the false but agreed-upon hypothesis is labeled a “hypothesis skeptic” or “hypothesis denier.”

up
0 users have voted.

"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

Lookout's picture

@Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal

reminds me of Galileo

Ultimately, Galieo’s book was banned, and he was sentenced to a light regimen of penance and imprisonment at the discretion of church inquisitors. After one day in prison, his punishment was commuted to “villa arrest” for the rest of his life. He died in 1642.

http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/the-truth-about-galileo-and-his-confli...

Don't tell us the truth... we don't want to hear! Kinda like what you said in your essay today...they don't want to hear either.

Be well!

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

magiamma's picture

Great essay. Just sent it to my whole family including my daughter who is a nurse practitioner for a cardiac doc and helps run a weight loss clinic. And to a bunch of my good friends. Thank you so much. Have a good one...

up
0 users have voted.

Stop Climate Change Silence - Start the Conversation

Hot Air Website, Twitter, Facebook

Lookout's picture

@magiamma

I always liked bucky fullers advice to "think global, act local".

Buckminster Fuller was a 20th century inventor and visionary who did not limit himself to one field but worked as a 'comprehensive anticipatory design scientist' to solve global problems. Fuller's ideas and work continue to influence new generations of designers, architects, scientists and artists working to create a sustainable planet.

https://www.bfi.org/

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

A can of beer.
A bottle of beer.
A couple of swigs of whisky, straight from the bottle.
A couple of slugs of Paul Newman lemonade, straight from the carton.

Anyone got a problem with that?

up
0 users have voted.

The earth is a multibillion-year-old sphere.
The Nazis killed millions of Jews.
On 9/11/01 a Boeing 757 (AA77) flew into the Pentagon.
AGCC is happening.
If you cannot accept these facts, I cannot fake an interest in any of your opinions.

Lookout's picture

@UntimelyRippd

I like beer too. I may gross you out however...I primarily drink Milwaukee's Best Lite (the beast lite- 3.5 g carbs). I used to tip 'em back pretty regular in the day. These days 2-3 a day at the most. I also enjoy a couple of glasses of wine in the evening, and Friday at the weekly picking might even have a shot of whiskey (if someone brings a good bottle).

I sincerely believe in everyone's right to eat and drink what they want. I presented this essay as food for thought...not as a dietary plan for folks. Hope you're doing well and feeling healthy!

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Dawn's Meta's picture

My DH and I, quite on our own, found "The Perfect Health Diet" by Paul Jaminet and his wife, to be so very helpful. It is broadly a modified Paleo with a few carbs thrown in. He is a physicist and she is a cancer researcher. When their health was going badly, they tried several approaches, and finally landed on this grouping. They discuss their investigations and why they believe things work or don't with as much science as they can discover. They also have come to believe in fasting.

We like it because it's clear when it's working and clear when we've gone off course. Also there is no calorie counting or portion control. We lost weight without trying. And rather quickly. Perfect Health Diet

I did find that white rice and white potatoes allowed on their version to be a surprise. But we are ok with these. Nightshades or or some of them can be a problem for some.

We don't agree that legumes especially garbanzos, which are a base for so many dishes in the ME and Asia may be ok depending on genetic background. Also, being half Sicilian, I can easily tip into lactose intolerance if my immune system is not up to snuff. By the other half is Alsatian and German, so when I can eat cheese and other mild products, I do.

Best luck everyone. We are indeed the shepherds of our own health.

up
0 users have voted.

A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they know they shall never sit. Allegedly Greek, but more possibly fairly modern quote.

Consider helping by donating using the button in the upper left hand corner. Thank you.

Lookout's picture

@Dawn's Meta

We love beans and they were a major component of our diet. Now they are a monthly or so treat...not so much about the lectins, but the carbs. We grow and eat sweet potatoes, but only once a week or so.

Thanks for the tip about the "Perfect Health Diet" and chart. Looks pretty close to what we eat. Thanks for dropping by and adding your thoughts!

up
0 users have voted.

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

@studentofearth Agree w/comment that some people do well on low-carb diets, some don’t. Keto sounds like Atkins diet. Twenty years ago several people where I worked went on it after our mgr. lost 30 lbs. w/it. Results highly varied. At least one person developed a serious health problem. A couple days ago The Doctors program featured Dr. Fung, who prescribes keto for his pts., and a cardiologist who vehemently opposes the keto diet. In the end, Dr. Stork said we could all agree to avoid toxic processed foods and that he tried the keto diet but it did not work well for his body. I’ll throw in my cat while at it. When I started reading why cats should be on grain-free food, I stopped feeding my healthy cat Blue Buffalo and put him on grain-free food. After a couple years he became severely constipated. After a couple $500 vet visits to unimpact him, he is now on prescription food for his digestive system and has strict instructions from the vet to NEVER eat grain-free food again. @Lookout

up
0 users have voted.

Anya